1
GL A A D.ORG
2014 NETWORK
RESPONSIBILITY
INDEX
2
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
NETWORK
RESPONSIBILITY
INDEX
BROADCAST
NET WORKS
CABLE
NET WORKS
Overview
3
ABC
9
CBS
12
The CW
15
FOX
17
NBC
20
ABC Family
24
A&E
26
FX
28
HBO
30
History
33
MTV
34
Showtime
37
TLC
40
TNT
42
USA
44
Additional Networks
46
GLAAD’s Entertainment Media Team
49
3
GL A A D.ORG
HBO
Looking
T
he GLAAD Network Responsibility Index (NRI) is an evaluation of the quantity and
quality of images of lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT)
people on television. It is intended to
serve as a road map toward increasing
fair, accurate, and inclusive LGBT media
representations.
This year, GLAAD is tracking only hours
of original primetime programming on
the broadcast networks, thereby bringing
them in line with how we have always
tracked their counterparts on cable.
As such, year to year comparisons are
somewhat more difficult to make, but it’s
still readily apparent that there has been
significant progress on TV overall. For the
first time, GLAAD awarded “Excellent”
grades to three networks in the same year.
These improvements follow several
years of critical milestones for the LGBT
community at large, including the end of
the military’s ban on openly gay service
members, numerous states legalizing
marriage for same-sex couples through
both the courts and the ballot box, and
even official federal recognition of those
marriages after a landmark Supreme Court
ruling. It is only fitting that the heightened
awareness of our community’s lives and
personhood should translate into better
media representation as well.
4
Overview 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
That’s not to say this has been the norm
for every network. The continuing exclusion of LGBT people from programming
on some networks begins to appear more
politically polarized with each passing
year. They must recognize that as long
as they present an outdated view of the
world, these networks will fail to connect
with a younger generation of viewers
whose peer group is increasingly open
and diverse.
gender content in their original programming in order to receive a grade of “Excellent” in the NRI. We hope they won’t
simply leave it to their online competitors
to set the bar.
However, that same sentiment could be
expressed regarding the overall lack of
significant or accurate stories about transgender people on TV at large. As GLAAD’s
own report on the subject has found, the
majority of depictions of transgender
people on TV over the last ten years were
problematic to outright defamatory. On a
brighter note, this year also signified the
beginning of a trans “media moment.”
Thanks to pioneers like actress and
advocate Laverne Cox, public awareness
of the transgender community is swiftly
on the rise, and more forward thinking
programs and networks would be wise
to capitalize on that. It’s no coincidence
that new online content creators like
Netflix and Amazon feature some of the
most groundbreaking and fully realized
depictions of transgender characters on
programs like Orange is the New Black
and Transparent respectively.
OF THE MOST GROUNDBREAKING
That is why GLAAD is officially announcing
that from the next report forward,
networks must feature significant trans-
IT’S NO COINCIDENCE THAT NEW
ONLINE CONTENT CREATORS LIKE
NETFLIX AND AMAZON FEATURE SOME
AND FULLY REALIZED DEPICTIONS OF
TRANSGENDER CHARACTERS
Last year, GLAAD found a significant
increase in the number of LGBT-inclusive
programming hours on the five broadcast
networks, but the new standard we have
adopted to track them this year makes
a direct comparison difficult. From this
point forward, the NRI will track only
original primetime programming hours
for broadcast networks, rather than also
including hours of repeats as has typically
been the case. By doing so, we will be
able to make direct comparisons between
broadcast and cable.
On cable, GLAAD tracked nine of the
same 10 networks as the previous report,
replacing TBS with A&E, which was last
tracked in 2011.
5
GL A A D.ORG
OVERVIEW OF BROADCAST
NETWORK FINDINGS
RANKING
OF THE BROADCAST
`
NETWORKS
RANKING
OF THE BROADCAST
`
NETWORKS
1.
NBC
37%
1.
FOX
42%
2.
FOX
36%
2.
ABC
33%
3.
ABC
34%
3.
NBC
29%
4.
The CW
33%
4.
The CW
28%
5.
CBS
28%
5.
CBS
14%
2013-2014
2012-2013
Listed by percentage of LGBT-inclusive hours of primetime programming
◊◊ On NBC, the drama Chicago Fire and reality series
Hollywood Game Night and The Voice resulted in
the network having both the highest percentage of
lesbian impressions (46%) and highest percentage of
inclusive reality hours (58%) among broadcast nets.
Unfortunately, their LGBT impressions were also the
least racially diverse, with only 11% of impressions
being made by people of color.
◊◊ FOX featured the most diversity among LGBT impressions with 43% of them being made by people of
color thanks to shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine and
Glee. FOX also had the highest percentage of trans
inclusive hours (10%), also thanks to Glee.
◊◊ Like NBC, diversity also remains an issue for ABC, as
the majority of the network’s LGBT impressions were
made by white people (84%). ABC also featured one
of the year’s highest rated LGBT-inclusive storylines;
the wedding of Mitch and Cam on Modern Family.
◊◊ The CW featured both the highest percentage of
gay (76%) and bisexual (36%) impressions of the five
broadcast networks due to content on series like
Arrow, The Carrie Diaries and The Originals.
◊◊ CBS still ranks last among broadcast TV for the sixth
year in a row, but with 28% of their programming
now being LGBT-inclusive, the network has closed
the gap considerably. Close to half of the network’s
inclusive hours came from alternative programming (47%) with series like Survivor and Big Brother
including out contestants.
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HIGHLIGHTS OF CABLE NETWORK
FINDINGS
◊◊ MTV, which was the first network to receive an “Excellent” grade in the NRI, tied for the top spot among
cable networks with 49% of their primetime programming including LGBT impressions this year. The network
featured the highest percentage of bisexual (42%)
impressions by any cable network thanks to programs
like Awkward., Faking It, and Wait ‘Til Next Year.
◊◊ FX tied at first place among cable networks with
49% of its primetime programming including LGBT
impressions. The new animated comedy Chozen
and returning series Anger Management helped the
network reach the highest percentage of inclusive
comedy hours (54%) among cable networks.
◊◊ While ABC Family dropped by eight percent this year,
the network still posted an admirable 42% LGBT-inclusive primetime programming hours. Thanks to characters like Emily on Pretty Little Liars and Lena on The
Fosters, ABC Family featured the highest percentage of
impressions made by lesbians (90%) and LGBT people
of color (57%) among all cable networks tracked.
◊◊ Premium cable network HBO rose by five percent
this year to 31% LGBT-inclusive hours of primetime
programming. In addition to several inclusive series,
the network excelled in specials with TV movie The
Normal Heart and documentaries Valentine Road and
The Out List among the year’s inclusive programming.
◊◊ A&E aired just 6% inclusive primetime programming hours in the last year, due almost entirely to
a gay couple on Storage Wars: NY. Sister network
History’s only inclusive hour makes up less than 1%
of the network’s total primetime programming for
the year. This puts History in last place among cable
networks tracked in this year’s NRI.
Overview 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
RANKING
OF THE CABLE
NETWORKS
RANKING
OF THE CABLE
NETWORKS
2013-2014
2012-2013
1.
MTV
49%
1.
ABC FAMILTY
50%
2.
FX
49%
2.
FX
40%
3.
ABC FAMILY
42%
3.
SHOWTIME
31%
4.
SHOWTIME
34%
4.
MTV
28%
5.
HBO
31%
5.
TLC
27%
6.
TLC
17%
6.
HBO
26%
7.
USA
17%
7.
USA
20%
8
TNT
9%
8
TNT
17%
9
A&E
6%
9
TBS
10%
10.
HISTORY
0%
10.
HISTORY
0%
Listed by percentage of LGBT-inclusive hours of primetime programming
7
GL A A D.ORG
METHODOLOGY
For this eighth annual report, GLAAD divided its
analysis into two sections: broadcast networks and
cable networks.
For broadcast, GLAAD researched original primetime
programming hours on ABC, CBS, The CW, FOX and
NBC from June 1, 2013 – May 31, 2014. Total primetime
programming hours researched: 2,832 hours. Primetime
begins at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific (7:00 Central and
Mountain) and ends at 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific
(10:00 Central and Mountain), Monday through Saturday.
On Sunday, primetime begins at 7:00 p.m. Eastern and
Pacific (6:00 Central and Mountain). FOX and The CW
do not air network programming during the last hour
of primetime, nor does The CW air programming on
weekends. GLAAD does not track primetime broadcast
hours programmed by local affiliate stations; only hours
of national broadcast.
In an effort to more closely align broadcast and cable
networks, this year GLAAD opted to track only first-run
original content hours on broadcast, whereas previous
years have analyzed the total of all broadcast programming hours. Repeat episodes, acquired (syndicated)
series and films, as well as live sporting events, were not
counted for any network, keeping the focus exclusively
on network-generated original programming.
The 10 cable networks examined for the 2013-2014 NRI
include ABC Family, A&E, FX, HBO, History, MTV, Showtime,
TLC, TNT and USA. Networks were chosen based on a
combination of Nielsen Media Research ranking, cultural
and media recognition factor, and the diversity and
breadth of original programming. For the purposes of
this study, news, sports, and children’s networks are not
counted. The original primetime programs on these 10
networks were examined from June 1, 2013 – May 31,
2014. Total programming hours: 2,292.75 hours.
All programming content, on both broadcast and cable
networks, was divided into four categories: drama series,
comedy series, unscripted programming (i.e. reality
and game shows), and newsmagazines/special event
FOX
American Idol
programming. Live sporting events were not counted as
part of our analysis. The categorization of programming
hours was implemented so that analysts could understand where a network’s strengths and weaknesses lie
when it came to portraying LGBT people.
Each program was reviewed for on-screen inclusion of
LGBT representations or content. GLAAD analysts noted
whether the LGBT depictions had a minor or major
presence in the story, as well as the orientation/gender
identity and the race/ethnicity of those depicted. Any
significant discussion of issues pertaining to LGBT lives,
whether in a scripted or newsmagazine setting, was also
counted, though no race/ethnicity could be assigned.
For the purpose of this report, each representation of an
LGBT person, or significant discussion of an LGBT issue,
during the course of an hour counts as one ‘impression.’
If one LGBT character appeared on 12 episodes, for
example, this character made 12 impressions.
Based on the overall quantity, quality and diversity of
LGBT representation, a grade was assigned to each
network: Excellent, Good, Adequate, or Failing.
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2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
broadcast
networks
9
GL A A D.ORG
ABC
Disney-owned ABC has a long and distinguished history of including lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender (LGBT) stories in its programming, offering up a number of
television “firsts.” Although ABC’s LGBT history begins with Jodie Dallas on Soap back
in 1977, perhaps the most notable moment came in the spring of 1997 when Ellen
DeGeneres came out both off-screen and on-screen on her sitcom Ellen. Over the
years, ABC has shown considerable commitment of the five major broadcast networks
to include LGBT characters and storylines on their scripted series with programs such
as Ugly Betty, Brothers & Sisters, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Modern
Family, and Happy Endings.
This year, GLAAD found that 34% of ABC’s original programming was LGBT-inclusive,
which is similar – though not directly comparable – to last year’s findings that 33% of
ABC’s total primetime programming hours were inclusive. Though the network was
topped by both FOX and NBC this season, ABC has consistently done well over the years
and often produced groundbreaking LGBT storylines. However, they also need to make
serious efforts toward making the characters in those storylines more racially diverse.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Thanks to multiple seasons of Dancing
With the Stars and out judge Bruno
Tonioli appearing in every episode,
most of ABC’s inclusive hours were
from this long-running reality
competition program. Out distance
swimmer Diana Nyad also made an
appearance as a competitor, though
it was short-lived.
◊◊ Another of ABC’s long-running properties, comedy series Modern Family,
continued to prominently feature gay
couple Mitchell and Cameron this
season. It ended up being an eventful
year for the pair as the committed
couple decided to make it “official” by
getting legally married, which finally
became an option for real-life California
couples following the overturning of
the discriminatory Proposition 8.
◊◊ The drama continued for married
couple Callie and Arizona on Grey’s
Anatomy, with Arizona’s infidelity last
season resulting in the two splitting up.
Arizona eventually became romantically involved with another established
character on the show, surgical resident
Leah, but broke it off once Callie told
her she wanted to get back together
and work on their marriage. On a show
in which a couple’s dramatic ups and
downs mean more screen time, Callie
and Arizona’s marital discord demonstrates Grey’s continued investment in
the characters.
GOOD
2014 RANKING
742
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
250.5
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (34%)
2012-13 Score: 33%
2011-12 Score: 27%
2010-11 Score: 23%
2009-10 Score: 26%
2008-09 Score: 24%
2007-08 Score: 24%
2006-07 Score: 15%
Previous years’ broadcast
network rankings were based on
total primetime hours, and took
episode repeats into account.
10
◊◊ Shonda Rhimes’ other soapy drama
Scandal also prominently featured
a same-sex couple, though their
problems went far beyond cheating.
As the White House Chief of Staff, Cyrus
Beene has committed many despicable
acts over the course of the show, but
using his own husband as blackmail
bait was certainly an eyebrow-raiser.
Unfortunately their relationship came
to an end this season when political
reporter James was murdered to cover
up another murder (of the Vice President’s closeted husband no less), which
might be considered offensive treatment of a gay character on a different
show. On Scandal, however, it’s par for
the course.
ABC 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
◊◊ The country music drama Nashville
gave a bigger role to closeted singer
Will this season, who continued to
hide behind a straight public persona
despite having to work with an openly
gay aspiring manager named Brent,
with whom he had a romantic past.
Will eventually had Brent fired and
married a musician named Layla to
keep his secret, but the pressure led
him to come out to her in the season
finale. At the time, his character was in
front of a reality show camera lens, so
next season may also see Will publicly
forced out of the closet. Given that the
show is set in the conservative and very
Southern world of country music, Will’s
storyline is unique.
ABC
Grey’s
Anatomy
11
GL A A D.ORG
◊◊ In other dramas, Revenge continued
to feature bisexual Nolan, who is one
of protagonist Emily’s few allies on the
show, and this season had an ill-fated
romance with a duplicitous man named
Patrick. On the Canadian cop drama
Rookie Blue, Officer Gail began dating
a woman for the first time; a forensic
specialist named Holly. Mistresses
featured lesbian couple Alex and Sally
who became entwined with Josslyn
(one of the main characters), though
many viewers were put off by the
show’s treatment of Josslyn’s “fluid”
sexuality. Betrayal also featured a
lesbian relationship between regular
characters Valerie and Jules, though the
show was cancelled after one season.
◊◊ In other comedies, the series Suburgatory lost gay school counselor Mr.
Wolfe, but still featured teenager Dalia,
who was revealed to have an ex-girlfriend last season. On Super Fun Night,
one of the main characters was Marika,
who came out to her friends near the
series’ end. Gay teenager Brad also
made several appearances on The
Middle.
◊◊ The hidden camera set-up show Primetime: What Would You Do? has often
presented situations involving fictionalized LGBT people, and this season
included actors playing gay basketball
players, gay Boy Scouts, and a lesbian
couple being refused a wedding cake by
a baker. On 20/20 the stories included
a transgender teenage couple and a
piece about the Rutgers basketball
coach fired for using gay slurs.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Despite the growing number of significant lesbian, gay and bisexual characters on the network, most of those
characters are still overwhelmingly
white. This year, only 15% of the
network’s LGBT impressions were made
by people of color, with most of those
being Callie on Grey’s Anatomy, who is
Latina. ABC should make a concerted
effort to address this in the future with
more diverse casting of these roles.
Like every other network, they should
also consider introducing more significant transgender storylines, particularly since ABC programs like Dirty Sexy
Money and Ugly Betty were groundbreakers in this regard.
12
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
CBS
CBS premiered Norman Lear’s classic series All in the Family in 1971 and almost immediately the show tackled sexual orientation with the episode “Judging Books by Covers.”
Classic episodes of Maude and M*A*S*H also dealt with orientation. Unfortunately,
outside of those few socially conscious shows 40 years ago, LGBT scripted impressions
on the network have been somewhat rare.
Of all the broadcast networks, CBS has struggled the most when it comes to including
LGBT people and stories in their programming. They have routinely trailed the other
networks in the report by a wide margin, but this year the gap has dramatically shrunk.
This is partly due to GLAAD changing how it tracks broadcast networks, but is also the
result of discernible efforts on CBS’ part to address its lack of LGBT representation on
programs like Two and a Half Men, How I Met Your Mother, and The Crazy Ones. It’s a
welcome improvement.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Reality competition programs are
rarely given repeat airings on broadcast television, which is why in previous
years of the Network Responsibility
Index they accounted for a lower
percentage of each network’s overall
programming hours. This put the
often very inclusive CBS programs like
The Amazing Race and Survivor at a
bit of a disadvantage, which has been
eliminated now that GLAAD will only
track original primetime hours for the
report. It’s not surprising then that
Big Brother accounted for most of CBS’
inclusive hours last year (36.5 hours)
given that gay competitor (and eventual
winner) Andy Herren appeared in every
episode. Unfortunately it was also
a season marred by rampant racist,
sexist, and homophobic slurs, some of
which Herren himself took part in.
◊◊ The Good Wife remained CBS’ most
inclusive fictional program thanks to
the continued presence of bisexual
investigator Kalinda Sharma.
This
season saw Kalinda getting close to a
female detective in an attempt to dig
up dirt on a colleague, but the two had
a nasty falling out when the truth was
revealed. Alicia’s gay brother Owen
also made a few appearances.
ADEQUATE
2014 RANKING
605
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
171
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (28%)
2012-13 Score: 14%
2011-12 Score: 8%
2010-11 Score: 10%
2009-10 Score: 7%
2008-09 Score: 5%
2007-08 Score: 9%
2006-07 Score: 9%
Previous years’ broadcast
network rankings were based on
total primetime hours, and took
episode repeats into account.
13
GL A A D.ORG
CBS
Two and
a Half Men
◊◊ Both seasons of Survivor included
gay competitors this year, with the
first actually featuring a gay couple
competing against each other. In
Survivor: Blood vs Water, competitors
from previous seasons were pitted
against loved ones, which included
the returning Colton and his fiancé
Caleb.
Though Colton left early,
Caleb remained for the duration of
the episodes. Last spring’s Survivor:
Cagayan included Brice, who also
left early. Like Big Brother and The
Amazing Race, Survivor has consistently included gay, lesbian, and
bisexual cast members.
◊◊ One of the most high profile new
characters of the year was Jenny on Two
and a Half Men, who was introduced
as the long lost daughter of the now
deceased Charlie Harper. A consummate womanizer and partier, Jenny
takes after her father, but eventually
fell for a woman named Brooke, with
whom she is currently in a relationship. The show also featured numerous
line-straddling inferences that the two
male leads act like a gay couple, and two
episodes in which Alan dated a transgender woman, which contained even
more borderline humor. Potentially
offensive content not-withstanding,
the show has certainly become more
LGBT-inclusive.
CBS 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
14
◊◊ The summer sci-fi hit Under the Dome
is about a community trapped inside
a mysterious structure, and included
a lesbian couple and their daughter
among those who could not escape;
attorney Carolyn and her psychiatrist
wife Alice. As a diabetic, the dwindling
insulin supply in the town eventually
led to Alice’s tragic death, but Carolyn
and her daughter remain. LGBT characters remain rare in big budget genre/
event shows of this kind, so the couple
were a welcome inclusion.
◊◊ In other dramas, Elementary brought
back transgender housekeeper and
ancient Greek expert Ms. Hudson for
an episode, though we continually hope
they’ll up her to at least a recurring role.
The show also featured several gay or
lesbian characters in other minor roles
throughout, demonstrating consistent
attention to inclusion even without a
regular or recurring character.
◊◊ Many of CBS’ comedies featured more
LGBT content this year, including How
I Met Your Mother, which featured
numerous appearances by Barney’s gay
brother due to every episode taking
place during the same wedding. On
The Crazy Ones, Brad Garrett recurred
as a gay partner at the ad agency, and
Mike & Molly featured a handful of
appearances by Harry, who came out
in the previous season. 2 Broke Girls
introduced new gay recurring characters, but also featured much of the
same problematic humor it always has.
◊◊ Much of CBS’s additional inclusive
hours came from the weekly newsmagazine program 60 Minutes, which
included gay journalist Anderson
Cooper in its lineup of reporters.
The Amazing Race also brought back
gay and deaf contestant Luke for an
“all-star” season this spring.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ CBS has established positive momentum
with their increasing LGBT content, and
was even one of the few networks to
feature multiple appearances by transgender characters across its programming. Some old habits die hard however,
and borderline offensive humor
continues to be a consistent feature of
the network’s comedy lineup on shows
like Mike & Molly, 2 Broke Girls, and Two
and a Half Men, even as they bring in
new characters and storylines. If they
can iron out the rough edges on some of
their depictions, the network will be in
remarkably better shape than they were
just a year ago.
15
GL A A D.ORG
THE CW
Launched at the start of the 2006-2007 TV season, The CW was created following a
merger between The WB and UPN, two networks that held respectable track records
in offering LGBT content. In the network’s freshman year, The CW failed to incorporate
LGBT characters into their scripted shows, but was ultimately awarded a “Fair” grade
in the inaugural Network Responsibility Index because 51 of The CW’s 55 hours of LGBT
content came from the highly LGBT-inclusive reality series America’s Next Top Model.
Since then, The CW has made significant improvements in their scripted programming
as well.
After decreasing from a high of 35% in 2010, The CW has bounced back up this year from
28% in 2013 to 33% this year. That’s thanks to inclusive programs like Capture, The Carrie
Diaries, and especially the long-running America’s Next Top Model, as well as GLAAD’s
new tracking structure. Unfortunately the racial diversity of those LGBT representations
has gone down significantly. In last year’s report, 50% of those impressions were made
by people of color, but this year that number has dropped to 23%. Though they are still
in better shape than some of their broadcast neighbors, the decrease is unfortunate.
The vast majority of those impressions were also male, with only 4% of The CW’s inclusive hours containing lesbian representation.
GOOD
2014 RANKING
296
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
99
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (33%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Once again, America’s Next Top Model
was one of the most inclusive shows on
The CW thanks to both its consultants and
new contestants. Photoshoot consultant
Johnny Wujek and social media consultant Bryanboy (Bryan Grey Yambao) both
returned for the latest season, which also
featured gay male contestant and finalist
Cory Hindorff. The season also began
with a transgender contestant named
Virgg, who unfortunately left the show
early for health reasons.
◊◊ The outdoor survival reality competition Capture featured not one, but three
different gay male competitors. Two of
those, Jacob and Rob, formed one of the
twelve teams competing for the grand
prize and made it all the way to the final
episode before being eliminated.
◊◊ Both The CW’s vampire-centric shows
featured new gay characters this year,
to varying degrees. In the latter half
of its fifth season, The Vampire Diaries
introduced a new gay character named
Luke: a male witch whose fate on the
show is still up in the air. On the new
spin-off series The Originals, self-proclaimed “gay club kid” Josh became the
franchise’s first gay vampire, though his
role was relatively minor throughout.
2012-13 Score: 28%
2011-12 Score: 29%
2010-11 Score: 33%
2009-10 Score: 35%
2008-09 Score: 20%
2007-08 Score: 21%
2006-07 Score: 12%
Previous years’ broadcast
network rankings were based on
total primetime hours, and took
episode repeats into account.
16
THE CW 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
The CW
The Carrie
Diaries
The Carrie Diaries
◊◊ On the final season of The Carrie Diaries, Walt continued
to play a major role on the show. The season saw him
kicked out of his home after his parents learned he
was gay and consequently move in with Carrie and
her family. Later, Walt and his boyfriend Bennet were
confronted with the AIDS epidemic, after Bennet’s ex
tested positive and became ill. Meanwhile, Samantha
didn’t have any significant romantic plotlines with
other women, though she and a straight-identified
female character on the show (Larissa) ended up in bed
together following a failed attempt at a threesome.
◊◊ In other CW shows, the comic-based series Arrow
introduced the character of Black Canary this season,
and then revealed that she had previously been in a
relationship with a female assassin named Nyssa. The
two eventually reunited in the season finale and are
expected to return. On Star-Crossed, a race of aliens
cohabitated with humans on earth and eventually
revealed that they were pansexual, though this didn’t
play out in any significant way. And the ballet reality
series Breaking Pointe included a regular gay male
dancer and several appearances by his fiancé.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ As noted earlier, though The CW improved their overall
percentage of inclusive hours this year, racial and
gender diversity among LGBT characters has dropped
significantly since the cancellation of Emily Owens,
M.D. and The L.A. Complex. We hope the network will
keep this in mind when casting potential new LGBT
roles, such as the yet-unannounced gay character set
to recur on the highly anticipated new series The Flash,
alongside the show’s recurring gay Crime Lab Director,
David Singh. Thankfully, it does look like Miss J has
officially returned to America’s Next Top Model.
17
GL A A D.ORG
FOX
Founded in 1986, FOX’s sensitivity to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues
has frequently been called into question. Melrose Place may be considered a pioneer in
early representations of gay men, but in 1994, GLAAD took FOX to task for censoring a
kiss between two gay characters on the show. Since then, GLAAD has taken issue with
FOX on a number of occasions, and the network received a “Failing” grade in the first NRI
for their mere 6% of LGBT-inclusive content. When questioned about that grade in the
press, Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly said it was “disheartening” and that the
network “absolutely” has a responsibility to represent LGBT people. Since then they’ve
certainly demonstrated that. Aside from a few years of minor decline, LGBT-inclusive
programming on the network has steadily increased.
In last year’s report, FOX actually achieved the highest percentage of LGBT-inclusive
primetime hours ever for a broadcast network at 42%, which remains the benchmark.
This year GLAAD found that 36% of their original programming was LGBT-inclusive, and
they remain one of the most inclusive networks tracked in the NRI. Where they have
most distinguished themselves among broadcast networks this year is in the racial diversity of those LGBT representations, with 43% being made by people of color thanks to
shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
GOOD
2014 RANKING
423.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
150.75
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (36%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ This was the second year that American
Idol featured openly gay and lesbian
contestants, but the first year that one
made it to the finals. Lesbian singer MK
Nobilette was upfront about her sexual
orientation from early on, and later told
the press she felt it was an important
part of how she presented herself to
the audience. We hope Idol will find
more contestants like her in the future.
◊◊ Most of FOX’s LGBT-inclusive hours
this year came from the reality competition So You Think You Can Dance,
which featured multiple appearances
by Adam Shankman and Jesse Tyler
Ferguson in the revolving judges’ seat.
Gay guest choreographers/dancers
Travis Wall, Louis Van Amstel, and Marc
Kanemura also made repeat appearances. Though their sexual orientation
is rarely addressed, gay professionals
have become far more common on
programs like this in recent years.
2012-13 Score: 42%
2011-12 Score: 24%
2010-11 Score: 29%
2009-10 Score: 30%
2008-09 Score: 11%
2007-08 Score: 4%
2006-07 Score: 6%
Previous years’ broadcast
network rankings were based on
total primetime hours, and took
episode repeats into account.
18
◊◊ Glee remained one of the most inclusive shows on television with at least
seven different regular or recurring
LGBT characters over the course of
last season. Kurt and Blaine reconciled and got engaged, while Santana
briefly dated a fellow waitress before
reuniting with her high school girlfriend
Brittany. Unique remained one of TV’s
only regular or recurring transgender
characters, though she didn’t have
many significant storylines aside from
an episode in which her right to use the
women’s restroom was challenged. It
was great to see the show address what
is a real-world issue for trans students,
but sadly Unique is not expected to be
part of the cast next season.
FOX 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
◊◊ One of FOX’s most lauded new shows
was the comedy series Brooklyn
Nine-Nine, which features openly gay
police Captain Ray Holt in one of the
lead roles. Holt is a stereotype-defying
character in more ways than one, but
he always maintains his own uniquely
deadpan sense of humor, and his sexual
orientation is never exploited for laughs
or conversely ignored. One episode
found Holt struggling to remain president of the gay police officer association he helped found, while another
saw he and his husband host a party
at their home. In many ways, Holt is a
model of the right way to include a gay
character in a comedy.
FOX
Brooklyn
Nine-Nine
19
GL A A D.ORG
◊◊ FOX’s animated comedies continued to
feature a scattering of LGBT characters
as well as some offensive humor. As
usual, there was some particularly ugly
content on Seth McFarlane’s Family
Guy, which included several jokes
about anti-gay violence, some mincing
gay depictions played for laughs,
transphobic jokes, and an episode in
which Peter tries to marry his own
son for financial gain that was tied
into the passage of marriage equality.
American Dad! remains notably better
in its handling of LGBT content despite
the outrageous antics of bisexual
alien character Roger. The Simpsons
continued to feature occasional appearances by Smithers and Patty, and had a
guest appearance by Rachel Maddow.
◊◊ In other FOX scripted series, Bones
still featured bisexual forensic
artist Angela, though now that the
character is happily married, the
subject of her sexual orientation is
rarely broached. This season The
Following featured a lesbian couple;
one of whom unfortunately tried to
murder the other, though that’s not
uncommon for a show about a serial
killer cult. And the gay brother of a
lead character on The Mindy Project
made a handful of appearances.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ In recent years, FOX has become a leader
in LGBT representation on television in
general thanks to programming that
is not only consistently inclusive but
often diverse as well. Looking ahead to
the coming roster of FOX shows, there’s
a lot to suggest they will remain near
the top of the list. Empire, Gotham, and
Red Band Society all feature significant
LGBT characters, many of whom are
played by people of color. It’s rare that
a network will be able to boast of one
show like that, much less three. Our
suggested area for improvement is to
take some of the unnecessarily mean
edges off of their animated comedies,
particularly on Family Guy.
20
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
NBC
NBC’s history of including LGBT characters as primetime series regulars or recurring
characters dates back to the 1994 debut of Friends, which featured Carol and Susan, a
lesbian couple who ultimately married on the show. Months after ABC cancelled Ellen,
NBC made the bold decision to premiere Will & Grace, a sitcom featuring Will and Jack,
two gay male lead characters. Despite initial criticism from conservative groups, Will &
Grace went on to become one of TV’s most successful series with LGBT lead characters,
winning 16 Emmys and running for eight seasons as a staple of NBC’s “Must-See-TV”
Thursday night lineup.
Every year we have seen NBC improve on their score from the previous report, and this
year is no different. In fact, with GLAAD finding that 37% of the network’s original programming hours were LGBT-inclusive, NBC has the highest amount of any broadcast network.
That’s all the more impressive considering just a year ago they ranked last out of the broadcast networks in terms of LGBT diversity in their upcoming scripted programming. It’s not
surprising then that almost 60% of the network’s inclusive hours this year were due to their
reality competition series, such as The Voice, The Biggest Loser, and America’s Got Talent.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Most of NBC’s inclusive hours can be
attributed to three seasons of a show
that has fully embraced LGBT contestants from its very first episode; The
Voice. The show’s summer 2013 season
featured singer Michelle Chamuel,
who eventually became her season’s
runner-up in the finale. In the fall of 2013,
contestant Nic Hawk made it through
auditions to appear several more times
before his elimination, while this spring
Kristen Merlin continued to the semi-finals, cheered on by her girlfriend.
The Voice should be commended for
continuing to make openly LGBT contestants a part of its brand and legacy.
◊◊ The second biggest contributor to NBC’s
inclusive hours was actually its nightly
2014 Winter Olympics recap, owing
mainly to the consistent presence of
openly gay former Olympian Johnny
Weir as a commentator on figure skating,
as well as a handful of out Olympians
like snowboarder Belle Brockoff and
speed skater Ireen Wüst. The Olympics
became a source of controversy when
the International Olympic Committee
refused to speak out against the
anti-LGBT propaganda laws recently
enacted by host country Russia. Alongside other LGBT organizations, GLAAD
called on broadcaster NBC and other
outlets to dedicate airtime to the stories
of LGBT Russians being hurt by the law,
but what little discussion of the issue
happened on NBC was ultimately limited
to reporters and pundits.
GOOD
2014 RANKING
765.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
286.5
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (37%)
2012-13 Score: 29%
2011-12 Score: 19%
2010-11 Score: 15%
2009-10 Score: 13%
2008-09 Score: 8%
2007-08 Score: 6%
2006-07 Score: 7%
Previous years’ broadcast
network rankings were based on
total primetime hours, and took
episode repeats into account.
GL A A D.ORG
NBC
Hollywood Game
Night
21
◊◊ America’s Got Talent featured two ◊◊ In other reality TV, out designer
gay opera singers in its 2013 summer
Nate Berkus hosted American Dream
season, one of whom, Jonathan Allen,
Builders, which also featured at least
also told his story of being rejected
one gay contestant last season. TV
by his family after coming out. Fellow
survivalist Bear Grylls hosted the
contestant Brendan James made it all
reality competition series Get Out Alive
the way to the finals. Also competing
with Bear Grylls, in which gay friends
were a pair of gay male aerialists whose
Kyle and Royce were one of the teams
double act simulated a love story.
pitted against each other to survive in
grueling outdoor environments. And
◊◊ The past season of The Biggest Loser
out Glee actress Jane Lynch hosted
turned out to be the final bow for out
the new show Hollywood Game Night,
trainer Jillian Michaels, but she remained
which paired celebrities with non-cea major part of every episode of the
lebrity contestants for the chance to
show. What’s more, her fellow trainer
win cash prizes following a series of
Bob Harper came out publicly as well.
party-style games. Lynch recently won
This was inspired by contestant Bobby
an Emmy award for her performance as
Saleem, who revealed that he hadn’t yet
host in the show’s first season, which
come out to his own father, which led
featured several other out celebs.
Bob to discuss his own personal coming
out story with him. Harper is expected
to return next season.
22
◊◊ Will & Grace’s Sean Hayes returned to
network television with his sitcom Sean
Saves the World, about a gay single
father raising a teenage daughter and
struggling with an erratic new boss
at work. The show also touched on
Sean’s dating life but was cancelled
after 13 episodes.
◊◊ The drama Chicago Fire continued
to feature paramedic Leslie Shay,
though her role this past season was
somewhat subdued. In addition to the
usual near-death experiences on the
show, her one romantic storyline found
her reconnecting with an old flame that
her friends didn’t approve of.
◊◊ In other NBC scripted programming,
the drama Dracula depicted the classic
character of Lucy as in love with her
NBC 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
best friend Mina, and saw Lucy turned
into a vampire after their falling out.
Additionally, there was the more unfortunate was the plotline of secret gay
lovers Lord Laurent and Daniel, which
saw one executed by a secret order
and the other die by suicide. The
2013 summer series Camp featured an
interracial gay couple in minor roles,
who were married onscreen in a later
episode.
Hannibal introduced the
lesbian character Margot Verger last
season, who is expected to return with
a love interest in season three. The fake
reality series Siberia featured a female
couple, one of whom died. And Law &
Order: SVU once again featured minor
gay content in several episodes, as well
as one fairly questionable gay-specific
plotline about male rape.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Thanks to their numerous LGBT-inclusive reality series, the drop in LGBT
content GLAAD feared might happen
following many show cancellations
last year never occurred. In fact it was
just the opposite, with the network
accruing more inclusive original primetime hours than any other broadcast
network. Unfortunately, they also
happen to have had the least racial
diversity of any broadcast network
among those LGBT impressions. In fact,
a whopping 89% of the LGBT people on
NBC were white, with less than 1% of
impressions being made by people who
were Latino/a or Asian Pacific-Islander.
If the network makes an effort to keep
an eye on racial diversity when also
casting for LGBT diversity, they’ll be in
great shape.
23
GL A A D.ORG
cable
networks
24
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
ABC FAMILY
Pat Robertson’s Christian Broadcasting Network was founded in 1977, but after changing
hands and names a number of times, it underwent radical transformation after the
network (which was at this point known as Fox Family) was sold to Disney in 2001
and became ABC Family. After a strategic revamp in 2006, the network began airing
programming for teens and young adults that is now also largely LGBT-inclusive. Bringing
the network into the limelight was the success of programs such as GLAAD Media
Award-nominees Kyle XY and GREEK, the latter of which was the network’s first series to
feature a regular gay character of color, named Calvin. Per the contract in Disney’s acquisition of ABC Family, CBN requires that the channel continue to air Robertson’s The 700
Club, which often serves as a platform for Robertson’s anti-gay sentiments. However, the
show is not affiliated with the network, and each telecast includes the disclaimer: “The
following/preceding CBN telecast does not reflect the views of ABC Family.”
Though the percentage of inclusive hours on ABC Family has decreased somewhat since
last year’s report, the quality of their LGBT inclusive programming has more than made up
for it. With high profile series like The Fosters and some of the most diverse LGBT representations of any television network, GLAAD is giving ABC Family a grade of “Excellent” this
year for the second time. The network was previously rated as “Excellent” in 2011.
EXCELLENT
2014 RANKING
147.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
62.5
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (42%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Once again, the majority of LGBT
impressions on ABC Family were on
the drama Pretty Little Liars, which
continues to be one of ABC Family’s
most popular and recognizable series,
not to mention the largest source of the
network’s original programming hours.
Multiracial lesbian teen Emily Fields
remains one of the show’s four lead
characters, but unfortunately suffered
a swimming-career threatening injury
and a breakup with girlfriend Paige this
year. Still, it was better than the recent
fate of lesbian character Shana, who
was accidentally killed while attempting
to murder someone else, which isn’t
too far from the norm on this program.
2012-13 Score: 50%
2011-12 Score: 34%
2010-11 Score: 55%
2009-10 Score: 37%
GL A A D.ORG
25
ABC Family
The Fosters
◊◊ Last year, the upcoming program GLAAD was most
eagerly anticipating was undoubtedly ABC Family’s The
Fosters, and the show did not disappoint. Following
an interracial lesbian couple and their family of biological, adopted, and foster children, The Fosters is unlike
any other show on television, telling important stories
highlighting the universality of family experiences. The
show’s first season gave couple Stef and Lena a lot of
ups and downs, including Stef being shot in the line
of duty (she’s a police officer), the two getting legally
married, one of their children running away, and
ultimately the couple looking forward to adding a new
baby to their growing family. What’s more, the show
also featured a transgender actor in a recurring role as
Cole, a trans teenager living in a group home, which
addressed the very real crisis of homeless LGBT youth.
◊◊ Pretty Little Liars and The Fosters counted for nearly
three quarters of ABC Family’s inclusive hours, but
the network has also reliably included recurring LGBT
characters or one-off episodes in nearly every other
series they put on the air. Switched at Birth continued
to feature occasional appearances by deaf lesbian teen
Natalie, and this season also featured a new adult gay
character named Renzo, played by API actor Alec Mapa.
Other series with minor content included Twisted, Baby
Daddy, The Vineyard, and Melissa and Joey.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Of ABC Family’s LGBT-inclusive hours, a whopping 90%
of those featured lesbian characters, which is indicative of the fact that the network’s overall character
gender balance also leans heavily female. What’s more
impressive is that those representations are also highly
racially diverse, thanks in large part to the major roles
of Emily on Pretty Little Liars and Lena on The Fosters.
Both of those programs will be back next year, alongside several new comedy series that feature supporting
gay male characters. We hope the new programs will
also continue the network’s tradition of strong and
diverse LGBT depictions.
26
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
A&E
Created in 1981, A&E was originally a primetime and late-night programming block on
Nickelodeon called ARTS until they merged with The Entertainment Network in 1984, as
part of a joint venture between NBC Universal, Disney-ABC Television Group, and Hearst
Corp. A&E consistently produces one of the largest slates of original primetime series of
any cable network, which consists mainly of reality programming.
It’s been three years since GLAAD last tracked A&E in the NRI, but we decided to take
another look this year after seeing both an increase in their original scripted programming, ratings gains, and media attention focused on the network following anti-gay
comments made by a cast member of its hit series Duck Dynasty. What we found is
that not much has changed since 2011, with only a slight improvement in LGBT-inclusive
programming from 5 to 6%.
FAILING
2014 RANKING
247
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ The majority of A&E’s LGBT-inclusive
hours came from the series Storage
Wars: New York, which is one of a
number of shows on the network
featuring the auctioning off of storage
spaces to people hoping to strike it rich
on the contents. Among the bidders
regularly followed by the show are
Chris and Tad, a gay couple who own a
Hoboken, NJ antique shop. The show’s
treatment of the couple is matter-offact about who they are and also very
much in keeping with the overall tone
of the show, which is in many ways the
ideal for LGBT-inclusion in the genre
of reality television. Unfortunately,
no other shows currently on A&E
followed suit.
15
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (6%)
2010-11 Score: 5%
2009-10 Score: 3%
2008-09 Score: 1%
2007-08 Score: 4%
27
GL A A D.ORG
A&E
Storage Wars:
New York
◊◊ Aside from Storage Wars: New York,
LGBT content on A&E was scarce. The
series Beyond Scared Straight – in
which juvenile delinquents are taken
to an adult prison to “scare them
straight” – featured a couple of visits to
a prison’s “alternative lifestyle” wing,
where LGBT inmates were housed.
In some moments the LGBT inmates
were depicted as genuinely trying
to help by telling their stories, but in
other instances they were clearly being
paraded out as freakish cautionary tales
meant to repulse the kids into avoiding
prison. Additionally, an episode of The
Killer Speaks featured a man who had
murdered several gay men recounting
his crimes, while an episode of the
scripted series Bates Motel featured a
minor gay character.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ In terms of LGBT-inclusivity, A&E’s
programming could use radical
improvement across the board, and
we’re hopeful that they will soon make
the effort. In truth, with programs like
Longmire and Crazy Hearts Nashville,
A&E’s programming slate offers many
opportunities for unique LGBT stories.
Television needs to reflect the reality
that LGBT people live in every community, including those that might look
outwardly conservative, and A&E is in
the right position to do just that.
28
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
FX
Launched in 1994 by News Corporation’s Fox Entertainment Group, FX was the first
television network to feature programming distributed online. Despite a loyal following
on the web, in 1997 executives scaled back and re-launched the network as “FX: Fox
Gone Cable.” The network later dropped the “Fox Gone Cable” tag and joined forces
with NASCAR to serve as their cable provider. In 2002, FX premiered The Shield, and
in 2003 premiered their smash-hit plastic surgery drama Nip/Tuck, which aired for six
seasons. Today they’re best known for hits like Archer, Sons of Anarchy, and American
Horror Story.
FX as a network hasn’t always correctly gauged the line between “edgy” and “offensive,”
which has been a repeated problem GLAAD has cited in its annual analysis of FX programming. The network has long prided itself on skirting that edge, but recent programs
like The Americans and Fargo suggest they have started investing in quality first and
foremost. That also seems to have translated over to their LGBT-inclusive programming, with improved content and shows like The Bridge bringing fresh and diverse LGBT
characters. This year also marks FX’s highest percentage of inclusive hours ever at 49%.
◊◊ The animated comedy Archer has always
prominently featured LGBT characters,
and this season Pam and Ray continued
to appear regularly as the cast of spiesfor-hire found themselves getting into
2014 RANKING
120.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
59
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (49%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Once again, most of FX’s inclusive
programming hours came from the
comedy series Anger Management,
which continues to feature gay therapy
group member Patrick in a regular role.
The past season saw Patrick gain (and
later lose) a new boyfriend, as well as
agree to marry a female friend to save
her from an arranged marriage and
for a promised cut of her dowry. The
show also still featured gay inmate Cleo,
though his boyfriend and fellow prisoner
Donovan seems to have left the show.
GOOD
the international drug trade after being
blacklisted by the government. FX’s
new series Chozen was a very similar
program in terms of style and tone, but
focused on an aspiring and openly gay
white rapper gay. The premise of the
show itself – that there’s something
inherently funny about a gay rapper
– did offend some viewers, and much
like Archer some of the humor arguably
crossed the line. Nevertheless, Chozen
also made its gay protagonist someone
the audience was meant to root for
and rarely resorted to stereotypes to
get a laugh. Chozen himself – boastfully macho and sexually aggressive
– was also refreshingly unlike most of
the “safe” gay male characters more
commonly seen on television.
2012-13 Score: 40%
2011-12 Score: 34%
2010-11 Score: 19%
2009-10 Score: 27%
2008-09 Score: 13%
2007-08 Score: 45%
29
GL A A D.ORG
FX
Chozen
◊◊ The new drama series The Bridge
follows a joint serial killer investigation
between U.S. and Mexican authorities, and featured a Mexican lesbian
reporter named Adriana Mendez
searching for her sister.
Though
Adriana only appeared in a recurring
role, she has been upped to a regular
for the show’s second season.
◊◊ One of FX’s most buzzed about
newer shows is The Americans, which
completed its second season this past
spring, and follows a pair of married
KGB spies secretly embedded in 1980s
Washington, D.C. This year, the protag-
onists found themselves up against
Andrew Larrick: a closeted gay naval
officer who had been blackmailed into
becoming a KGB informant. Larrick was
shot to death in the season finale.
◊◊ The motorcycle gang drama Sons of
Anarchy featured the protagonist’s
bisexual ex-wife Wendy in a recurring
capacity this season, which saw her fall
back into drug abuse and ultimately go
to rehab. Another storyline featured
the transgender character Venus, who
returned for two episodes to enlist the
gang’s help in rescuing her son from his
abusive biological grandmother.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ FX’s programming wasn’t spotless in
terms of offensive content, but it was
certainly in much better standing than
in previous years. Many of the LGBT
characters that did appear were also
unique in some ways, yet they tended
to be white gay men. Adriana on The
Bridge was a step in the right direction,
and we hope future FX shows will strive
to tell more diverse stories.
30
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
HBO
In 1972, the Home Box Office (HBO) was created to broadcast feature films and sports
coverage to audiences across America. In 1983, HBO premiered their first original series,
Fraggle Rock. That same year, HBO aired the first television movie ever made on a cable
network, about Canadian amputee and athlete Terry Fox. Original films, specials, and
scripted series followed with the network often featuring LGBT-inclusive content. The
1989 documentary Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt and the 1993 film And the
Band Played On highlighted LGBT experiences. Later, LGBT-inclusive series such as Six
Feet Under and True Blood earned GLAAD Media Awards.
This year, HBO’s percentage of inclusive hours increased from 26% to 31%, but what
really set the network apart is the incredible breadth and quality of the LGBT stories
they told. From Looking to The Normal Heart to Real Time with Bill Maher, HBO told
groundbreaking stories about our community and addressed our issues head on. The
strength of their LGBT-inclusive documentary programming alone, which included films
like Valentine Road, The Out List, and Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley, would
have been enough to earn the network an “Excellent” grade in this year’s report.
EXCELLENT
2014 RANKING
184.25
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
56.25
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (31%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ The sixth season of True Blood continued
to feature several gay, lesbian, and
bisexual characters. Vampire couple
Pam and Tara found themselves locked
away in a vampire prison alongside
gay vampire Steve Newlin, though he
ultimately didn’t survive the season.
Gay medium and diner cook Lafayette
was also on hand, albeit with little in
the way of a storyline this year.
◊◊ Racking up just as many LGBT-inclusive
hours as True Blood on HBO this year
was actually the comedy/news/talk
show Real Time with Bill Maher, due to
the regular appearances of out journalists, public figures, and celebrities as
well as discussions about LGBT issues in
the media. Among the guests joining
Bill on the show this year were Barney
Frank, Rachel Maddow, Dan Savage,
Glen Greenwald, Andrew Sullivan,
Christine Quinn, and Jose Antonio
Vargas.
◊◊ By far the most inclusive show on HBO
this year, and arguably all of television,
was the new series Looking, which
focused on a group of gay male friends
living in San Francisco.
Not since
Showtime’s The L Word ended has
there been a scripted show in which the
lives of LGBT people were the dominant
focus, and Looking stood out even
2012-13 Score: 26%
2011-12 Score: 33%
2010-11 Score: 31%
2009-10 Score: 26%
2008-09 Score: 42%
2007-08 Score: 26%
31
GL A A D.ORG
HBO
The Normal
Heart
more for its grounded storytelling and
fresh, natural style. The regular and
recurring cast included at least seven
gay men of varying age and race (3 of
them were men of color) in storylines
that saw them examining their lives and
navigating romantic and professional
relationships. The series ran for eight
half-hour episodes, and will return for a
second season next year.
◊◊ Undoubtedly HBO’s most popular show
right now is the pop culture phenomenon Game of Thrones, which had
previously featured gay prospective
monarch Renly, who met an untimely
and magical demise in the show’s
second season. His former lover and
knight Loras has remained on the
show’s periphery ever since, and did
make several appearances this season.
Much more memorably, this season
also introduced Prince Oberyn and
his lover Ellaria Sand, both of whom
were explicitly depicted as non-monogamous and bisexual, as well as also
openly dismissive of what they considered to be other characters’ restrictive
notions of human sexuality. Dubbed
the “Red Viper,” Oberyn’s introduction
as one of the season’s major characters
was eagerly anticipated by fans of the
source books, though so was his sad
and gruesome demise near the season’s
end. Ellaria is anticipated to return.
32
◊◊ Girls has also been one of HBO’s
most buzz-grabbing shows since it
premiered two years ago and has
featured LGBT characters in recurring
or small roles. This season, Hannah’s
gay ex-boyfriend Elijah appeared in
several episodes, as did Adam’s lesbian
friend Tako, and David, Hannah’s editor
who passes away.
◊◊ In other HBO series, Real Sports with
Bryant Gumble included segments on
transgender MMA fighter Fallon Fox
and anti-gay laws in Russia. Ja’mie:
Private School Girl included a minor
gay character, and Getting On seemed
to suggest one of its main characters
was about to come out in the season’s
end. Minor characters also popped up
on Hello Ladies, The Newsroom, and
Family Tree.
◊◊ In addition to its ongoing series,
HBO also presented an impressive
number of inclusive documentaries
and original films, which delved into
significant LGBT issues and events to a
degree rarely seen on television. The
documentary Valentine Road examined
the tragic story of Larry King, a gender
HBO 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
non-conforming child murdered by
a classmate in 2008 and the ensuing
media frenzy around the crime and
trial. Americans in Bed interviewed
ten couples about their relationships,
and included both a lesbian and a
gay male couple. Comedian Whoopi
Goldberg presented a documentary
profiling pioneering black comedian
Moms Mabley, who was a lesbian. The
Battle of amfAR recounted the story of
Dr. Mathilde Kim and actress Elizabeth
Taylor joining forces to take on the
AIDS epidemic, while Six by Sondheim
recalled highlights of the career of out
Broadway titan Stephen Sondheim. The
Out List was a documentary consisting
entirely of interviews with out individuals, including famous faces like Neil
Patrick Harris, Wanda Sykes, and trans
advocate Janet Mock, discussing what
it’s like to be LGBT today. Finally, one of
the year’s most celebrated TV movies
was Ryan Murphy’s adaptation of The
Normal Heart, Larry Kramer’s scathing
and heartfelt dramatization of the early
days of the AIDS epidemic.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Given the sheer scope of LGBT-inclusive
content this year on HBO, it’s difficult
to imagine the network will be able to
match itself next year, particularly in
regard to original documentaries and
films. If there’s one area in which we’d
love to see HBO do more, it’s depictions of transgender people, which
were relatively scarce this year aside
from segments in The Out List and Real
Sports. We’d love to see what kind of
original, authentic trans characters
HBO’s scripted shows could introduce,
and in fact, Looking is currently set to
do just that with its second season.
33
GL A A D.ORG
HISTORY
The History Channel was launched in 1995 as a venture by A&E Television Networks.
Their initial original programming was largely comprised of historical documentary series,
with topics like World War II and conspiracy theories making the channel famous for
predictable programming. That eventually changed when they began airing reality series
about high-risk jobs like Ice Road Truckers and Ax Men, which were so successful for the
network that those series began to greatly outnumber the documentary programming,
and the channel eventually switched to the simpler name of History. They recently have
started to produce scripted content as well, such as the miniseries Hatfields & McCoys
and the historical drama Vikings.
Despite the fact that History produces more hours of original programming than nearly
any other cable network tracked by GLAAD in the NRI, this is the third year the network
has received a failing grade.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ The documentary series Bible Secrets
Revealed included an episode that
examined the story of Sodom and
Gomorrah, which led several of its
experts to discuss how the bible has
been long used to justify modern
day prejudices against LGBT people.
Several of the historians state that
the bible never expressly condemned
same-sex relationships.
FAILING
2014 RANKING
313.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
1
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOUR (0.3%)
2012-13 Score: 0%
2011-12 Score: 3%
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Though their roots began in documentary programming about historical
events, as of late History’s programming leans closer to reality programming that often involves Southern
settings and blue collar jobs. Though
shows like these aren’t typically associated with diverse representations, it
could actually be a great opportunity
for inclusion. Particularly in many
parts of the country where old prejudices remain, it’s important that the
stories of the LGBT people and families
that live there make it out to a wider
audience. At the very least these
communities need to see that LGBT
equality is not simply something that
happens in “blue” states, but directly
effects their own friends and neighbors
as well. These are the same communities depicted in some of History’s
original series.
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2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
MTV
MTV Networks is a division of the Viacom label with sister networks including MTV2,
mtvU, VH1, BET, and Logo. Though the network originally aired music videos, a majority
of MTV’s current programming now consists of reality or unscripted series. Their first
reality smash hit, The Real World, offered a view into the lives of seven strangers living
together. 1994’s The Real World: San Francisco featured gay, HIV-positive Cuban American
Pedro Zamora. Through his actions and relationship with Sean Sasser, he educated his
housemates and Americans everywhere about the misconceptions of the LGBT community and gave a face to the AIDS crisis. The network has regularly featured LGBT participants in The Real World, The Challenge, True Life, and their other alternative series.
LGBT-representation on MTV bounced back to 49% this year, thanks to long running
shows like The Challenge, and new series like Wait ‘Til Next Year and Faking It. Though
some of those programs consisted of the usual reality TV drama, others told authentic
and moving stories about the lives and challenges of LGBT young people today. What’s
more, these representations included many people of color, and MTV achieved a better
gender balance than most networks could claim. All in all, it was a very strong year for
the network, and earned MTV a grade of “Excellent” for the second time.
2014 RANKING
230.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
113.5
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (49%)
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ The biggest single source of both
original programming hours on MTV,
as well as LGBT-inclusive hours, was the
scripted series Teen Wolf, which ran for
a 24-episode season split into halves
during the NRI’s research parameters.
Still on the show was gay lacrosse
player Danny, but this season he was
joined by a new wolf named Ethan who
also became Danny’s boyfriend. They
made semi-regular appearances on the
series, with Ethan in particular closely
tied into the season’s major story arc.
Unfortunately, neither character has
returned in the subsequent season.
EXCELLENT
◊◊ The Challenge remained MTV’s most
inclusive reality show, with multiple
out competitors from past seasons of
both The Real World and The Challenge
competing in physical contests for a
cash prize while living together for
the duration of the show. Among the
lesbian, bisexual, and gay competitors in
the last two seasons were Aneesa, Frank,
Emily, Derek, Preston, and Marlon.
2012-13 Score: 28%
2011-12 Score: 23%
2009-10 Score: 42%
2008-09 Score: 17%
2007-08 Score: 16%
35
GL A A D.ORG
and decide to keep up the charade. The
show’s real twist was revealed in the
first episode when one of the friends
– Amy – realizes she has very real
romantic feelings for her friend Karma.
The show gained a lot of LGBT fans
over its eight episode first season but
also caused controversy with its season
finale in which Amy sleeps with the guy
Karma likes after being romantically
rejected by her. Their story, along with
that of regular gay character Shane
and several new LGBT characters, will
continue to play out when Faking It
returns for a longer season two.
◊◊ The Real World has remained one of
the most consistently inclusive shows
on television since it first premiered
in 1992 and this year was no different.
Its 29th season was called Real World:
Ex-plosion, in which participants learned
they were being housed together with
former flames. Among the cast were
Arielle and her ex-girlfriend Ashley,
who actually reconciled with one
another over the course of the season.
One particularly noteworthy episode
saw Arielle introduce her roommates
and viewers to several of her gender
non-conforming and/or transgender
friends in response to online criticism
of her appearance.
MTV
Wait ‘Til Next
Year
◊◊ One of MTV’s most intriguing and
controversial new shows is Faking
It, an Austin high school-set comedy
about a pair of female best friends who
suddenly find themselves popular after
they are mistaken for a lesbian couple
◊◊ One of MTV’s more unique shows this
year was Wait ‘Til Next Year, which
took a more grounded look at a group
of students at a Michigan high school
where the football team was on a
43-game losing streak. On the cheerleading squad was Danielle, who began
dating a female basketball player
named Yanni.
36
◊◊ The high school comedy series
Awkward. is currently in its fourth
season and continues to feature
Tamara, who previously came out as
bisexual. More recently the character
seemed to recant on that and won’t be
counted moving forward, but the show
also features minor recurring characters Theo and Cole; two gay friends
who produce school videos.
◊◊ In other MTV programming, the reality
series Catfish: The TV Show featured a
handful of episodes with LGBT individ-
MT V 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
uals, some of whom had been duped by
false online relationships, and some of
whom had done the duping. Generation
Cryo followed lesbian teen Breeanna
as she sought to find her biological
father. House of Food combined Top
Chef with The Real World, and included
gay contestant/roommate Will. Ke$ha:
My Crazy Beautiful Life followed the
bisexual pop star as she balanced
touring and her personal life. And
the nursing reality show Scrubbing In
featured gay nurse Fernando.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ There really wasn’t any significant
transgender inclusion on MTV this year,
aside from one episode of The Real
World which addressed a cast member’s
decision to explore her own negative
reactions to people speculating about
her gender identity. The network has
also incorporated trans issues into their
new “Look Different” campaign, which
seeks to raise awareness about less
obvious forms of bigotry and prejudice.
Moving forward however, MTV and all
networks will need to feature some
kind of trans-inclusive programming in
order to receive an “Excellent” grade in
future editions of the NRI. With MTV’s
scripted content also seemingly on the
rise, we hope they’ll consider adding a
regular or recurring trans character to a
new or existing show.
37
GL A A D.ORG
SHOWTIME
Media giant Viacom expanded its service in 1976 when it debuted the premium subscription network Showtime. Showtime has played an important role in increasing LGBT
visibility by showcasing original films such as Losing Chase (1996), Armistead Maupin’s
More Tales of the City (1998), and Soldier’s Girl (2003). Showtime has also committed itself
to LGBT-inclusive programming through groundbreaking original series like Queer as Folk
(2000) and The L Word (2004), both of which never shied away from physical intimacy,
while also addressing multiple facets of the community, like parenting, marriage, and
HIV/AIDS.
Showtime’s great legacy of LGBT-inclusive shows continues on programs like Shameless
and Nurse Jackie, though in recent years the network unfortunately has made a few
significant missteps in their handling of transgender characters and content. Some of
their “edgier” programming occasionally features problematic depictions of gay, lesbian,
and bisexual characters as well, but over the years Showtime has produced enough
laudable LGBT storylines that we remain hopeful there are still more to come.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ The comic-drama series Shameless
continued to feature several gay characters, though teenager Ian was absent
for much of the show’s fourth season.
Instead, Ian’s delinquent ex-boyfriend
Mickey stepped into the spotlight. In
addition to becoming an amateur pimp,
this year saw Mickey track the missing
Ian down only to find him working as
a go-go dancer in a gay club. After
reuniting with Ian but being blackmailed by his Russian wife Svetlana,
Mickey finally comes out to his family
at his son’s christening, resulting in a
bloody bar brawl with his own father.
As over the top as that sounds, it’s
completely in keeping with Shameless’
freewheeling narrative of people living
in society’s margins.
◊◊ The new series Masters of Sex followed
pioneering sex-researchers William
Masters and Virginia Johnson in the
early days of their professional collaboration in the 1950s and has featured
gay and lesbian characters in several
storylines.
Among Masters’ first
subjects is a prostitute named Betty
who sleeps with men for financial gain,
but who is only attracted to women. It
is also revealed that Barton Scully, the
provost of the university at which the
show is set, is a closeted (and married)
gay man who eventually attempts to
undergo painful “conversion therapy.”
The lives of these characters effectively
depict the challenges faced by LGBT
people living in a more socially regressive time period, and both their stories
are expected to continue.
GOOD
2014 RANKING
165
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
55.5
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (34%)
2012-13 Score: 31%
2011-12 Score: 46%
2010-11 Score: 37%
2009-10 Score: 32%
2008-09 Score: 26%
2007-08 Score: 32%
38
◊◊ Another of Showtime’s inclusive new
shows this year was Ray Donovan,
though it didn’t get off to a good start.
The show follows a “fixer” in L.A.
who helps make his client’s problems
disappear, and Ray’s team includes his
lesbian assistant Lena, who is revealed
to have some rather violent anger
problems. The first season included a
storyline about a male actor “caught”
in an affair with a transgender sex
worker, for which Ray’s “solution” to
the situation was to instead place the
actor with an overdosed female corpse,
Showtime 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
effectively sending the message that
the show considered that to be a
preferable alternative.
Following
that highly offensive first episode, the
storyline went on to depict the actor
both marrying and being blackmailed
by the trans woman, and seemed to
have only a marginal understanding of
gender identity and sexual orientation.
This is one show we hope avoids transgender storylines altogether from now
on, if this is the best it can do.
Showtime
Masters of Sex
39
GL A A D.ORG
◊◊ Nurse Jackie returned once again, but
gay nurse Thor remained a relatively
minor character on the show. This
season there was mention of a neverseen boyfriend, and one episode found
him caring for an elderly gay man who
was dying of cancer while another had
him attempting to administer vaccinations in a gay bar.
◊◊ The comedy series House of Lies
continued to feature the protagonist’s
bisexual, gender non-conforming son
Roscoe and gave him a new friend and
love interest this season with another
gender non-conforming teen named
Lex. Though they are in some ways
perceived as a heterosexual couple
on the show, Lex and Roscoe both
strongly challenge gender norms.
Unfortunately, as a character, Lex was
thoroughly unlikeable to both viewers
and Roscoe’s father, who at one point
attempted to covertly feel the teenager’s chest to determine Lex’s gender.
◊◊ In somewhat of a departure from
Showtime’s other programming, the
documentary series Time of Death
presented a hard and intimate look at
people facing their own mortality. One
individual followed over the course
of the series was Little, a lesbian who
suddenly found herself having to act as
her siblings’ caretaker as her mother
was dying of breast cancer.
◊◊ On other Showtime series, Episodes
continued to feature minor appearances by gay TV executive Andy, and
Anderson Cooper delivered several
stories on 60 Minutes Sports. A few
episodes of The Borgias and Penny
Dreadful aired during the report period
as well, which featured gay assassin
Michaleto and bisexual bon vivant
Dorian Grey respectively.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ As was the case last year, racial diversity among the LGBT representations
on Showtime was low, with only 14%
of them not being made by white
people. And as was mentioned earlier,
representations of transgender people
on the network are sometimes badly
mishandled.
History dictates that
Showtime can do better.
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2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
TLC
TLC was originally founded in 1972 by the U.S. Government and NASA as a means of
providing education programming at no cost, but was later privatized in 1980 when the
network became known as The Learning Channel. For years, they focused on topics
pertaining to science, history and current events, and was eventually bought by Discovery
Communications, which it remains a part of today. The network’s programming focus
shifted to more human interest programming that emphasized personal stories and mass
appeal topics. Among their more well-known programs of late have been Here Comes
Honey Boo Boo, 19 Kids and Counting, Little People Big World, Toddlers & Tiaras, and Say
Yes to the Dress.
GLAAD first began tracking TLC two years ago and, considering the audiences they
market to, we were pleasantly surprised to find that 20% of their programming hours
were LGBT inclusive. Much of TLC’s programming is designed to appeal to a more
conservative or Middle American audience, highlighting large Christian families, traditional ceremonies (like weddings), traditional gender roles, and odd human behavior. It’s
especially important and impressive that networks like TLC bring LGBT stories to these
same audiences, whose understanding of LGBT people and issues is crucial to changing
hearts and minds in more conservative areas of the country. Though they have dropped
to 17% from a high of 27% last year, we hope other reality programming-heavy networks
like A&E follow their example.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ As was the case in the previous two
years, the bulk of TLC’s LGBT impressions are still on shows in which gay
men help women choose clothes and
dresses, usually for weddings. Say Yes
to the Dress continued to include stylist
Randy Fenoli, who was also featured
on the series Randy to the Rescue and
Randy Knows Best. Gay stylists also
appeared on Dress spinoffs like Say
Yes to the Dress: Atlanta, as well as
Something Borrowed Something New
and What Not to Wear.
ADEQUATE
2014 RANKING
569.5
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
96
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (17%)
2012-13 Score: 27%
◊◊ One of TLC’s most notable hits is the
Toddlers and Tiaras spin-off Here Comes
Honey Boo Boo, which follows a former
pageant contestant named Alana and
her eccentric family living in Georgia.
Alana’s gay uncle Lee – who she affectionately refers to as “Uncle Poodle” –
began living with the family this season,
and appeared in nearly half the episodes.
For a family that likes to call themselves
“rednecks,” the Thompsons’ unconditional love for their uncle challenges the
preconceptions of many viewers and
makes them a model of acceptance.
2011-12 Score: 20%
GL A A D.ORG
41
TLC
Welcome to
Myrtle Manor
◊◊ Welcome to Myrtle Manor is a reality series following
the community of a South Carolina trailer park, which
includes Roy, a former drag queen who now works in
the trailer park salon. Roy is a consistent presence on
the show and is depicted as accepted by his friends and
neighbors.
◊◊ The reality series Breaking Amish: LA follows various
Amish individuals who have left home for “Rumspringa,”
an Amish rite of passage in which young people explore
the outside world before deciding whether to return to
their own community. One of the storylines focused on
an aspiring clothing designer named Matt, who met with
a gay designer and his gay friends.
◊◊ In other TLC programs, Toddlers and Tiaras featured
a group of drag queen judges for one pageant, while
another episode included a lesbian couple whose granddaughter was a contestant. One episode of Family S.O.S.
with Jo Frost featured a lesbian daughter, and Hoarding:
Buried Alive included an episode with another lesbian
who became a hoarder after being rejected by her
family. The show Wedding Island featured gay couple
Dwayne and Rodney as they conducted their destination wedding in Puerto Rico in one episode, and out
actor Jim Parsons learned more about his family history
on an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ There were far fewer shows on TLC this season that
seemed to highlight the lives of average LGBT individuals rather than gay men assisting in style decisions,
which is unfortunate considering how groundbreaking many of those depictions have been in the
past. We hope to see more on future TLC shows,
even if it is just those LGBT people buying wedding
cakes, talking about strange eating habits, or any of
the other human interest stories that make up much
of the network’s programming.
42
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
TNT
Launched in 1988 by media mogul Ted Turner, Turner Network Television (TNT) was originally the destination for live sporting events like NASCAR races and NBA and NFL games.
When launched as a cable service, the network also aired movies and repeats of television shows. In 2001, TNT rebranded itself with the tagline “We Know Drama” to emphasize their acquisition of syndicated series like Law & Order and Cold Case. It featured a
number of original drama series in the past year, though an even number of its original
programming hours were actually from unscripted series.
Following several years of relatively high scores in GLAAD’s annual report, TNT has
dropped down to their lowest percentage of LGBT-inclusive programming since scoring
just 1% in 2008. Last year, GLAAD found that 17% of TNT’s original primetime programming was inclusive following a high of 34% the year prior, but this year they have dropped
again to just 9%. The cancellation of the drama series Southland had a significant effect
on the numbers, but it’s also clear that the network needs to keep an eye on character
diversity in new shows moving forward.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ With the police drama Southland
cancelled, the only series on TNT with
a recurring or regular LGBT character
last year was Major Crimes. A spin-off
of past series The Closer, Major Crimes
retained the majority of its predecessor’s cast, including openly gay medical
examiner Dr. Morales, who appears in
roughly half the series’ episodes. More
promising is the fact that following
hints and confirmation from producers,
teenage runaway Rusty (a regular
character) finally came out as gay in
the season finale. Hopefully, this will
lead to more storylines highlighting
the struggles faced by many LGBT
youth, though an episode centered on
the murder of a transgender child last
summer was problematically handled.
In the episode, it was revealed that
the child in question was murdered by
her own brother who blamed her for
ruining their family.
◊◊ On other TNT programs, LGBT representation was actually scarcer than
it has been in recent years, with the
only significant content appearing
on the reality competition 72 Hours.
In one episode, former Mr. Gay USA
Michael Holtz was part of a winning
team of strangers tasked with locating
a suitcase full of money. The network
also aired the Screen Actors Guild
Awards, which included appearances
by out performers like Jim Parsons.
FAILING
2014 RANKING
187
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
17
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (9%)
2012-13 Score: 17%
2011-12 Score: 34%
2010-11 Score: 33%
2009-10 Score: 34%
2008-09 Score: 19%
2007-08 Score: 1%
43
GL A A D.ORG
TNT
Major Crimes
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Now that Rusty has come out on Major
Crimes, the number of inclusive hours
on TNT should increase provided he
remains a regular character on the
show. The network should strive
to be more inclusive in their other
programming however, particularly
when programs like Rizzoli & Isles and
Franklin & Bash actually have significant LGBT fan bases. This goes for their
unscripted and reality programming as
well, which in terms of original hours,
actually surpassed original scripted
programming on the network this year.
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2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
USA
USA Network started in 1977, when a New York City-based outlet was launched as the
Madison Square Garden Network. Three years later, the channel was renamed USA
Network to reflect their national reach. Among basic cable networks, USA boasts an
enormous potential audience, since they’re available in roughly 94 million homes as
of 2008. USA has played host to a plethora of original programs, including shows like
Burn Notice, White Collar and Psych. The network also airs a number of syndicated hits
like House, Law & Order: SVU and NCIS. With the slogan “Characters Welcome,” USA is
committed to a slate that focuses on strong personalities, but they have also shown an
admirable commitment to partnering with progressive social causes with the “Characters Unite” campaign.
Following their highest score yet last year at 20%, USA has dropped a few percentage
points. There have rarely been more than a few LGBT characters on the network in any
given year, so the cancellation of Political Animals and Diana’s absence on White Collar
had a significant impact.
THE 2013-2014 SEASON
◊◊ Based on a British series, the new
comedy Sirens followed the exploits
of three paramedics, one of which is
a Black gay man named Hank. As one
of the show’s leads, Hank gets a large
amount of screen time, and as many
good lines and funny moments as his
straight male coworkers. The show’s
first season didn’t give him much in
the way of romance due to him still
not being over an ex-boyfriend, though
he eventually got some closure after
attending said ex-boyfriend’s wedding.
Hank was one of the strongest new gay
characters to appear this year, and the
show will return for a second season.
◊◊ The reality series Summer Camp featured
adults living together in a camp setting
and participating in various themed
challenges against each other in teams.
Gay Broadway performer Kyle was one
of the show’s contestants.
◊◊ Sadly, F.B.I. Agent Diana Barrigan was
mostly absent from the fifth season
of White Collar, and only appeared
sporadically after her character gave
birth in the second episode. Hopefully,
she’ll get a bit more screen time in the
show’s truncated final season.
◊◊ On other USA series, gay football
player Rex was a recurring character on
Necessary Roughness, following his big
coming out storyline on the show the
season prior. And Suits revealed that
one of its longtime characters, Darby,
was gay, but not until the very end of
his final episode on the show.
ADEQUATE
2014 RANKING
128
TOTAL HOURS OF
ORIGINAL PRIMETIME
PROGRAMMING
22
LGBT-INCLUSIVE
HOURS (17%)
2012-13 Score: 20%
2011-12 Score: 17%
2010-11 Score: 18%
2009-10 Score: 4%
2008-09 Score: 12%
2007-08 Score: 4%
45
GL A A D.ORG
USA
Sirens
◊◊ One other important thing to note
is that though GLAAD does not track
the show WWE Monday Night Raw on
account of its airing live every Monday
night, gay WWE wrestler Darren Young
has made numerous appearances on
the show since coming out publicly
last year.
SUGGESTED AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT
◊◊ Sirens is a strong addition to both
USA’s LGBT-inclusive programming
and inclusive TV shows in general, but
with Necessary Roughness gone and
White Collar set to end soon, the vast
majority of USA shows will consist of
exclusively straight characters. We
hope the network bears this in mind
when adding new characters and
greenlighting new series.
46
2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
ADDITIONAL NETWORKS
AMAZON
BRAVO
The world’s largest online retailer hit the web in 1995,
but didn’t start producing their own original streaming
content until 2013 through its Amazon Instant Video
service. The Amazon original series Alpha House included
two female legislative assistants who are dating and a
male Senator who is perceived to be closeted. Though it
didn’t premiere the full series during this report’s research
period, Amazon also made the pilot for Transparent available to users, which is a new drama series about a family’s
reaction to their father coming out as transgender.
Bravo has a well-known history of producing highly inclusive reality series, including Queer Eye for the Straight
Guy and the first seasons of Project Runway. While
the network aims to start producing original scripted
content in the next year, the long list of LGBT-inclusive
reality series that ran new episodes this past year include
Tabatha Takes Over, the Million Dollar Listing franchise,
The People’s Couch and Newlyweds: The First Year.
AMC
AMC (formerly American Movie Classics) has long been a
haven for cinephiles, though the network has gone through
several format changes and upped its slate of original series
over the past decade. Scripted drama Mad Men included
an appearance by closeted ad exec Bob Benson and The
Walking Dead included zombie hunter Tara Chamber. The
groundbreaking unscripted series Small Town Security,
which featured transgender security officer Captain Dennis
Starr, returned for a third season this spring.
BBC AMERICA
Part of BBC Worldwide’s media network, BBC America
brings some of the UK’s top programs to U.S. audiences.
The network has a long history of LGBT-inclusive programming such as Tipping the Velvet and Torchwood. Doctor
Who featured several appearances by the mystery solving
couple Madame Vastra and Jenny. Orphan Black introduced transgender clone Tony and continued to include
gay and bisexual characters Felix, Cosima and Delphine.
In The Flesh introduced Kieren’s new love interest Simon
and The Graham Norton Show ran new episodes as well.
E!
E!, an NBCUniversal network, features celebrity news
and unscripted programming. Out stylist George Kotsiopolis continued to serve as a co-anchor for the celebrity
fashion critique series Fashion Police. Ross Mathews had
two seasons of his own talk show Hello Ross, which has
since been cancelled. E.J. Johnson and Jonny Drubel were
featured in the first season of Rich Kids of Beverly Hills
with Johnson signing an additional overall development
deal with the network.
HGTV
HGTV’s programming focuses on issues of home buying,
renovation, design, gardening and craft. The network was
launched in 1994. The reality design competition HGTV Star
(formerly HGTV Design Star), hosted by David Bromstad and
judged by Vern Yip, often includes several LGBT contestants
each season. Though the personal lives of hosts, judges
and contestants are rarely explored, HGTV often features
same-sex couples looking for home-related assistance in
programs such as House Hunters and Love It or List It.
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GL A A D.ORG
HULU
NETFLIX
Video streaming service Hulu launched for public access
in 2008 as a joint venture between NBCUniversal, Fox
Broadcasting Company and Disney-ABC Television
Group. They introduced the subscription service Hulu
Plus in 2010. Hulu original series Deadbeat included an
episode with a gay mafia boss. The streaming service has
begun streaming the full Sailor Moon series uncensored
including gay, lesbian and non-binary stories that were
cut or edited from the first North American release. Hulu
also has U.S. exclusive distribution rights for the inclusive
British soaps Coronation Street and Hollyoaks.
Netflix, launched in 1997, provides disc rental and online
streaming of films and television programs. The company,
which currently has over 50 million subscribers, began
producing its own original series in 2012. Dramas House
of Cards and Lilyhammer both included LGBT characters in recent seasons. Orange is the New Black, which
features several lesbian and bisexual inmates as well as
transgender woman of color, Sophia Burset, has received
critical praise.
OWN
Lifetime, owned by A&E Networks and established in
1982, has focused on programming for women since
its beginning. Scripted drama Drop Dead Diva’s fifth
season and the majority of the series sixth and final
season fell in the research period, including one episode
about a closeted baseball player and another with lead
character Jane defending a trans student. Witches of East
End featured few appearances by gay librarian Hudson.
Project Runway continued to be a big source of inclusivity
for the network and Project Runway: All Stars featured
transgender designer Ari South.
The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), launched in 2011,
provides a mix of original reality series, scripted shows,
documentaries and films. During the past year, Oprah:
Where Are They Now? featured several LGBT figures
including Margaret Cho and a Queer Eye for the Straight
Guy cast reunion. The unscripted series Houston Beauty
included trans beauty school student Mia and Oprah
Prime aired a special “Gay Hollywood” episode with Jesse
Tyler Ferguson, Dan Bucatinsky and Wanda Sykes. OWN
also hosted the television premiere of the documentary
Bridegroom and aired several Wanda Sykes presents
Herlarious specials. The Haves and the Have Nots also
continued to feature a gay character.
LOGO
PBS
Logo was the only basic cable network devoted to
programming for LGBT people, though the network has
recently shifted its focus to programming for a broader
audience. The network’s inclusive unscripted offerings
include RuPaul’s Drag Race, Bad Sex and U.S. distribution
of 1 Girl 5 Gays.
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is a nonprofit
network of stations around the country which provides
content, often educational, to public broadcasting
channels. Due to inconsistencies among markets, not all
PBS stations may air the same content, but during the past
year, PBS continued to broadcast British drama Downton
Abbey, which features duplicitous butler Thomas Barrow.
They also added British import Last Tango in Halifax,
which features couple Kate and Caroline. Documentaries
How to Survive a Plague and God Loves Uganda also aired
as part of PBS’ Independent Lens series.
LIFETIME
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Additional Networks 2014 NE T WOR K R ESPONSIB ILIT Y INDE X
PIVOT
SYFY
Pivot, owned by Participant Media, launched in 2013 as
a new channel for millennials dedicated to programming
promoting social change. Pivot has U.S. distribution rights
of Australian comedy Please Like Me, from out writer Josh
Thomas in which he plays a version of himself. Docuseries
Jersey Strong featured couple Brooke and Maggie as they
struggled to balance their work lives with their home lives
and topical talk show TakePart Live included discussions
on several LGBT issues.
Syfy specializes in science fiction, fantasy and paranormal
programming as an NBCUniversal network. Syfy has
made a concerted effort to include LGBT characters in
many of its scripted series, miniseries and original TV
movies. The network airs Canadian drama Lost Girl about
bisexual succubus Bo who is in an off-and-on relationship
with scientist Lauren. Warehouse 13 and Being Human
both had their last seasons air this year and new drama
Defiance counts several LGBT characters. Adam Berry
was featured on the most recent season of Ghost Hunters,
but has since departed the series.
STARZ
Premium channel Starz was founded in 1994 as a sister
network to Encore. The network didn’t begin serious
expansion of its original scripted programming until
2005. Pirate drama Black Sails, a prequel to the Treasure
Island novel, featured saloon owner Eleanor Guthrie and
brothel runner Max who had an off-and-on relationship.
Da Vinci’s Demons continued to gloss over the famous
inventor’s relationships with men.
VH1
VH1 was launched in 1985 to show music videos and
appeal to a slightly older demographic than sister music
channel MTV. The network has shifted to music-related
programming and celebrity reality series, while branching
out to scripted original content in recent years as well.
Omar continued to be a large part of drama Single Ladies,
though the upcoming season will move to the Centric
network. The last season of Couples Therapy featured The
Real L Word’s Whitney Mixter and Sada Bettencourt and
Black Ink Crew included former shop manager Sassy.
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GL A A D.ORG
GLAAD’S ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA TEAM
GLAAD’s Entertainment Media Team not only works with entertainment-related media platforms to encourage fair,
accurate and inclusive representation of LGBT people, but also to combat problematic content and instances of defamation in these industries. This process may involve reading scripts, viewing rough cuts, pitching story ideas, consulting
with writers and producers, working with talent to better inform them about portraying LGBT characters and arranging
entertainment-related events and panels. GLAAD also promotes LGBT-inclusive projects through GLAAD’s blog, social
media and the daily LGBT TV listings, “What to Watch on TV.”
MATT KANE
Director of Entertainment Media
[email protected]
Matt Kane is a GLAAD liaison to the entertainment industry,
advocating for the inclusion of diverse LGBT stories in films,
scripted television and reality programming and collaborating
with film festivals to launch new LGBT voices. He helps shape
GLAAD’s response to acts of anti-LGBT defamation in entertainment media, is the principal writer of the Studio Responsibility
Index, Network Responsibility Index, and oversees the publication of Where We Are on TV. Prior to joining GLAAD, he worked
for several television shows and film festivals and worked for
GLAAD as a freelance programmer for the Queer Lounge at
Sundance. He holds an M.F.A. in film studies from Boston
University.
MAX GOUTTEBROZE
Strategist – Entertainment Media
[email protected]
Max Gouttebroze serves as an active member of the GLAAD
Programs Team by identifying and monitoring LGBT representations, trends and developments in television and film.
He is the lead writer of GLAAD’s Where We Are on TV report
and conducts long-term research and data collection for the
annually released Studio Responsibility Index and Network
Responsibility Index. Max also serves on the GLAAD Media
Awards Communications Team and is a frequent contributor
to GLAAD’s blog. A graduate of the College of Charleston’s
Communication Program, Max joined GLAAD in September
2010 as the Communications Intern. In December of that
year, he became a part of GLAAD’s Digital Initiatives Team and
moved into his current role in June 2011.
MEGAN TOWNSEND
Strategist – Entertainment Media
[email protected]
Megan Townsend serves on GLAAD’s entertainment team
where she monitors LGBT-inclusive content on television and
film and is a frequent contributor to GLAAD’s blog. She is the
principal author of “What to Watch on TV,” GLAAD’s daily
guide to LGBT-inclusive television programming, a contributing
writer for GLAAD’s Network Responsibility Index and conducts
long-term research for GLAAD’s Where We Are on TV and
Studio Responsibility Index. A graduate of Central Michigan
University, Megan joined GLAAD in January 2012.
ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA INTERNS
GLAAD’s Entertainment Media Interns join the Programs
Team in researching and monitoring LGBT-inclusive content
on television and in film. They conduct research for the
Studio Responsibility Index, Network Responsibility Index and
contribute to GLAAD’s blog.
RENEE FABIAN
University of Southern
California, class of 2014
MEGAN WALSH
Michigan Technological
University, class of 2015
LJ BECKENSTEIN
OMAR ROSALES
Hampshire College, class of 2015 California State University at
Northridge, class of 2015
DREW SCHILSON
The Evergreen State College, CLEO ANDERSON
class of 2014
Antioch University, class of 2015